Cooking appliance



Sept. 16, 1952 E. A. FARR COOKING APPLIANCE Filed July 22, 1949 ll I .ef ma m@ M f 6 IV. B

Patented Sept. 16, 1952y cooKIN? APPLiNGE''` 3 formed of some relatively light metal possessing high heat-conductivity, such as aluminum, or aluminum alloy. Each of the waiiie grids 25 and 23 embodies a plurality of projecting elements 21 such as are characteristic of waffle grids. In addition, each grid is provided with a peripheral rim 28 adapted to conne the waffle-batter. The rear face of each lof the grids 25 and 25 is shaped to nt against the cooking surface I3 of the associated grill and to have Aa considerable area of close contact therewith whereby effective heattransmission from the grill to the grid will occur.

For the purpose of holding the grids 25 and 25 in contact with their associated grills, I may eme ploy retaining devices of the type illustrated in Fig. 3. Such retaining mechanism comprises an ear 3B secured to the grid 25 as by means of a screw 3l so that it projects outwardly beyond the margin of the grid 25 where there is pvotally connected to it a rotatable clamp nger. 32. Conveniently, the pivotal connection of the ear 30 with the finger 32 is effected through the medium of a pivot pin 33. The nger 32 rhas an inwardly projecting cam portion 34 shaped to engage beneath the flange 23 on the grill i5. Desirably, the connection between the ear 3i! and the iinger 32 embodies a spring 35 which surrounds the pin 33 and urges the iinger upwardly with respect to the ear, thus exerting a constant effort holding the waiiie grid 25 resiliently in contact with the grill I5. Similar retaining devices may be employed to retain the upper waffle grid 26 in association with the upper grill 2|. The retaining device illustrated constitutes the subject-matter of United States Letters Patent No. 2,496,705, granted February "l, 1950, on the application of John P. Theisen and myself.

Desirably, the heating elements I1 associated with the upper and lower grills are automatically controlled. The control means illustrated in the drawing comprises a switch embodying two leaf springs 36 and 31 rigidly mounted in insulated relation at one end and provided with contacts 38 engageable and disengageable by flexing of one or the other of the springs. The lower spring 36 supports an adjusting screw 33 which projects; Vupwardly through the plane of the upper spring 31 `for lco-operation with the free end of a bimetallic .strip 4U responsive to the temperatureVV 4I and the lower surface of the grill l5 so that when the screws 42 are tightened, the bi-metallio strip will be forced into close heat-transmitting relationship with such grill. The bi-metallic strip 40 is arranged so that its free end will move downwardly upon an increase in temperature,

engage the end of the screw 39, and bend the lower spring 36 to separate the contacts 38. It will be understood, of course, that the heating elements I1 are adapted for connection to a suitcasing where it is provided with an adjusting Y knob 41 bywhich it may be rotated.

"*Fromsthe construction described, it will be seen that a cooking appliance embodying my invention may be used, without the grids in place, to provide a pair of opposed or upwardly presented, plane cooking surfaces heated by the associated heating elements Il. With the'grids in place, the device isV adapted for the cooking of waiiles. Heating for the baking of waffles is derived from the same heating elements I1 as are used whenrthe device is being employed as a grill; and the close contact between the grid and grill maintained over a considerable area bythe retainers 32 provides for eiective heattransmission from grill to grid. The intimate contact between the lower waffle grid 23 and the lower grill i5 also makes it possible to employ the temperature-responsive switch mechanism to control the duration of a waiiie-baking interval; In baking wales, the grids 2e and 2i must be preheated. vWhen the batter is applied to the grids their temperature drops; and because of the close contact between the lower grillri5 close the switch 33-31 if such switch is not al-`V ready closed. .The resultantenergization of the heating element il supplies heat which is transmitted through the grills to the grids to cook ther s waffle. As is known, the browningof the waiiie'V as its cooking nears completion is a function'of the vtemperature of the grids in contact with it.

Because of the close contact between the lower grid 23 and thelower grill I5, the temperature ofthe latter follows closely the temperature of Vthe former; and as the loi-metallic strip is in close which the bi-metallic strip operates to separate the contacts 33; Contrariwise, rotating the cam l5 to lower the free end of the strip 31 will in- 'I crease the temperature at which the contacts 33 are separated and will hence result in waiiies o i' n' darker color.

As indicated above, it is desirable that eachy waiile g-i'id iit closely over a considerable area against its associated grill in order that heat may be transmitted eirectively from the grills to the grids. For accuratev` automatic control of waiile browning I have found it essential that the area.

over which .the lower grill,V i5 and grid Y25 are in Contact include the neighborhoodof the perature-responsive element d3. Because of warping of the grid and grill as the result of temperature changes during their initial machining and during cooking operations, as well as forother reasons, it is diflicult to produce a grid and grill which will engage each other closely over the entire extent of their opposed surfaces. Accordingly, in order to insure the teml advisable to relieve one or the other of the opposed surfaces of the grid 25 and the grill l5 over those portions relatively remote from the vicinity of the temperature-responsive element 40.

In the construction shown, where the temperature-responsive element 40 is mounted near the center of the grill l5, the peripheral portions of one of the opposing surfaces of the grill and grid are relieved, as indicated exaggeratedly at 50 in Fig. 1. Conveniently, the relief is provided on the waffle grid 25 and gradually increases from the center portion of the lower surface of such grid tothe outer edges thereof. In practice, it has been found that a relief of the order of 0.015 inch at the periphery of a grid whose horizontal`- dimensions are approximately 10 inches willprove adequate for my purpose.

The expedient of providing relief between the opposed 'surfaces of the grid and grill except in the vicinity :of theL temperature-responsive element 40 not only makes accurate machiningr unnecessary but also accommodates for any warp- 2 ing of tha-grid and grill due to temperature changes. v y

I claim as my invention:

1. In a cooking appliance, a grill having a substantiallyfplfane cooking face. an electric heating element lfor heating the grill, a waiiie grid having a face opposed to and adapted for application tothe cooking face oi the grid to receive heatnconducted therethrough from the rheating element, a temperature-responsive element in close heat-transmitting relation with the grill at a predetermined point on the opposite side thereof from the cooking face, one of the opposed facesof the grill and grid being relieved over portions remote vfrom such predetermined point to provide over such remote portions a slight space between said opposed faces and to leave an unrelieved surface-portion occupying only a small fraction of the entire area of such surface, releasable means for holding the grid in p lace on the grill and in close heat-transmitting relationship therewith in the immediate vicinity of said temperature-responsive element, and switch means operated by the temperatureresponsive element for controlling the supply of current to said heating element. f

2. The invention set forth in claim 1 with the addition that said temperatureeresponsive element is located near the center of the grill, one of the opposed faces of the grill and grid being relieved over its peripheral portion.

EDWARD A. FARR.

REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 144,151 Smith Oct. 28, 1873 1,405,043 Krusheld Jan. 31, 1922 1,450,277 Brown et al. Apr. 3, 1923 1,900,619 Snyder Mar. 7, 1933 1,971,971 Walder Aug. 28, 1934 2,102,879 Benson Dec.` 21, 1937 2,213,728 Allenby Sept. 3, 1940 22,267,387 Winborne Dec. 23, 1941 2,282,089 Propernick May 5, 1942 2,361,285 Gough Oct. 24, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 224,904 Great Britain June 11, 1925 

